Return to Oz after 10 years

[Sea breeze]

After 10 years of living in the UK 6 in Cornwall we are thinking of heading back to oz. Victoria 
During these 10 years we have consistently been thinking of getting back over there to give it a “proper go “ 

when we lived there before I ran a multiple occupancy house and my partner worked FIFO 

we also travelled and worked our way around 

I feel we can have a bettter life back over there but we are well set up here 

what’s changed since we left ? I feel it may not be as easy as it was 

 know this is vague but any comments welcome 

thank u 

 

 

 

[Marisawright]

Where in Victoria did you have in mind?   One big thing has changed here -- housing affordability, especially in Melbourne and Sydney.  House prices, both for sale and rental, have shot up in the last six years.  It's such a big part of your household budget, I'd recommend you do some thorough research to make sure you would really be better off.   

[Toots]

Also to be aware of shortage of rentals.  https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-08-26/how-the-rental-market-broke-can-it-be-fixed/102767494

[InnerVoice]

8 hours ago, Sea breeze said:

what’s changed since we left ? I feel it may not be as easy as it was 

As Marisa said, property over here has skyrocketed, but apart from that I don't think too much has changed. It's not like the UK where they seem to change things just for the sake of it.

What's wrong with Cornwall then? I've always loved it down there - probably the only place in the UK I would ever consider living.

[Sea breeze]

On 30/10/2023 at 21:17, InnerVoice said:

As Marisa said, property over here has skyrocketed, but apart from that I don't think too much has changed. It's not like the UK where they seem to change things just for the sake of it.

What's wrong with Cornwall then? I've always loved it down there - probably the only place in the UK I would ever consider living.

Cornwall Is lovely but u haven’t lived there 

the winters are long and wet, the summer cuts u off so many tourists u don’t get to enjoy anything really 

traffic is getting terrible Newquay is like a giant building site 

one estate has another 25 years of building 5,000 houses but no new rds drs etc 

[Sea breeze]

On 30/10/2023 at 21:07, Marisawright said:

Where in Victoria did you have in mind?   One big thing has changed here -- housing affordability, especially in Melbourne and Sydney.  House prices, both for sale and rental, have shot up in the last six years.  It's such a big part of your household budget, I'd recommend you do some thorough research to make sure you would really be better off.   

Not actually sure 

we have been over before looked at housing etc 

narre warren surrounding or Mornington ( I know it’s expensive) we lived at morrabin before for about 6 months 

maybe look at geelong I’m horsey so semi rural ideally 

[Amber Snowball]

2 hours ago, Sea breeze said:

Not actually sure 

we have been over before looked at housing etc 

narre warren surrounding or Mornington ( I know it’s expensive) we lived at morrabin before for about 6 months 

maybe look at geelong I’m horsey so semi rural ideally 

I haven’t lived in geelong for years now, but I have a bit of a soft spot for the place. I would live there ahead of narre warren that’s for sure.

Both places have probably become more built up since I was there, but you should find something on the fringe I would think. 

[Tulip1]

3 hours ago, Sea breeze said:

Cornwall Is lovely but u haven’t lived there 

the winters are long and wet, the summer cuts u off so many tourists u don’t get to enjoy anything really 

traffic is getting terrible Newquay is like a giant building site 

one estate has another 25 years of building 5,000 houses but no new rds drs etc 

I agree with this and many don’t realise.  I have a very good friend who moved to Cornwall many years ago.  She saw it as the lovely life many imagine.  However, pretty much the whole of the summer was a nightmare as the roads were gridlocked, especially the seven weeks of school holidays.  There was no such thing as jumping in your car to pop toTescos, you could be an hour stuck in traffic driving a mile down the road.  You couldn’t go anywhere for the day without the hell of spending ages trying to find a parking space along with thousands of tourists.  The weather on the west coast can be rough and as you say, very wet in winter.  Also, like many tourist spots, much of it was dead during the winter and many things were closed down.  After two years they moved back to where they had left and never regretted the return.  I think places like Cornwall would be lovely if you could have a second home/holiday place there but I don’t think living there full time is a idillic as many think. 

[InnerVoice]

5 hours ago, Sea breeze said:

Cornwall Is lovely but u haven’t lived there 

the winters are long and wet, the summer cuts u off so many tourists u don’t get to enjoy anything really 

traffic is getting terrible Newquay is like a giant building site 

one estate has another 25 years of building 5,000 houses but no new rds drs etc 

 

2 hours ago, Tulip1 said:

I agree with this and many don’t realise.  I have a very good friend who moved to Cornwall many years ago.  She saw it as the lovely life many imagine.  However, pretty much the whole of the summer was a nightmare as the roads were gridlocked, especially the seven weeks of school holidays.  There was no such thing as jumping in your car to pop toTescos, you could be an hour stuck in traffic driving a mile down the road.  You couldn’t go anywhere for the day without the hell of spending ages trying to find a parking space along with thousands of tourists.  The weather on the west coast can be rough and as you say, very wet in winter.  Also, like many tourist spots, much of it was dead during the winter and many things were closed down.  After two years they moved back to where they had left and never regretted the return.  I think places like Cornwall would be lovely if you could have a second home/holiday place there but I don’t think living there full time is a idillic as many think. 

Thanks - so that's well and truly off the list of prospect retirement destinations then

[Marisawright]

6 hours ago, Sea breeze said:

Not actually sure 

we have been over before looked at housing etc 

narre warren surrounding or Mornington ( I know it’s expensive) we lived at morrabin before for about 6 months 

maybe look at geelong I’m horsey so semi rural ideally 

If it's a choice between Narre warren and Geelong, then Geelong wins, hands down.

[Sea breeze]

1 hour ago, InnerVoice said:

 

Thanks - so that's well and truly off the list of prospect retirement destinations then

It’s def all of the above but no longer dead in winter 

quiet yes but it’s nice actually got to the beach today sunny and mild 

however it’s howling wind and bucketing down with rain now I mean bucketing 

during winter it’s storm after storm 

[pob]

I lived in Cornwall 20 years ago,  Newquay, St Austell.

Don't suppose you know a guy called Jason Lockett do you? Into his music.

Summer is horrible full of tourists, but as soon as the kids go back to school and it is great. I would even enjoy the bad weather, I used to head to a pub called the walkabout and watch the storms through their big glass windows. You would feel the whole building shake!!!

 

We lived in Australia ten years ago and returned a year ago.

It's changed so much over the past ten years. I also have changed so much over the past ten years.

It was always insular, now more so. There is a lack of foreign goods here. I'm not talking about mushy peas or prawn cocktail crisps, you can still get those if that's what floats your boat .

It's other stuff like Quality Italian olive oil, I went to grab a bottle of Evian from the supermarket and only then realized hat there was only Australian water, the list goes on. The quality of day to day food items seems to have dropped.

The Australians as a nation seem to be more nationalistic, there seems to be less foreign goods. We have been told that when covid hit this happened and it has stayed that way.

 

My wife got sick and I saw how the healthcare system worked. It was then we realised that Australia as a country would fail us if we ever got sick here.

 

When opportunity arises, we will leave. Would you like to swap places?

[Marisawright]

1 hour ago, pob said:

My wife got sick and I saw how the healthcare system worked. It was then we realised that Australia as a country would fail us if we ever got sick here.

So would you say it's worse than the NHS?

[Toots]

2 hours ago, pob said:

I lived in Cornwall 20 years ago,  Newquay, St Austell.

Don't suppose you know a guy called Jason Lockett do you? Into his music.

Summer is horrible full of tourists, but as soon as the kids go back to school and it is great. I would even enjoy the bad weather, I used to head to a pub called the walkabout and watch the storms through their big glass windows. You would feel the whole building shake!!!

 

We lived in Australia ten years ago and returned a year ago.

It's changed so much over the past ten years. I also have changed so much over the past ten years.

It was always insular, now more so. There is a lack of foreign goods here. I'm not talking about mushy peas or prawn cocktail crisps, you can still get those if that's what floats your boat .

It's other stuff like Quality Italian olive oil, I went to grab a bottle of Evian from the supermarket and only then realized hat there was only Australian water, the list goes on. The quality of day to day food items seems to have dropped.

The Australians as a nation seem to be more nationalistic, there seems to be less foreign goods. We have been told that when covid hit this happened and it has stayed that way.

 

My wife got sick and I saw how the healthcare system worked. It was then we realised that Australia as a country would fail us if we ever got sick here.

 

When opportunity arises, we will leave. Would you like to swap places?

For some reason I thought you had already returned to the UK?  Must have muddled you up with someone else.

I think it depends where you live when it comes to the quality of healthcare.  God knows Tasmania has its problems with regard to healthcare but we've been very lucky so far.  Our GP is excellent and I'm always hoping she stays here as so many of them move to the mainland cities.  

 

[Sea breeze]

11 hours ago, pob said:

I lived in Cornwall 20 years ago,  Newquay, St Austell.

Don't suppose you know a guy called Jason Lockett do you? Into his music.

Summer is horrible full of tourists, but as soon as the kids go back to school and it is great. I would even enjoy the bad weather, I used to head to a pub called the walkabout and watch the storms through their big glass windows. You would feel the whole building shake!!!

 

We lived in Australia ten years ago and returned a year ago.

It's changed so much over the past ten years. I also have changed so much over the past ten years.

It was always insular, now more so. There is a lack of foreign goods here. I'm not talking about mushy peas or prawn cocktail crisps, you can still get those if that's what floats your boat .

It's other stuff like Quality Italian olive oil, I went to grab a bottle of Evian from the supermarket and only then realized hat there was only Australian water, the list goes on. The quality of day to day food items seems to have dropped.

The Australians as a nation seem to be more nationalistic, there seems to be less foreign goods. We have been told that when covid hit this happened and it has stayed that way.

 

My wife got sick and I saw how the healthcare system worked. It was then we realised that Australia as a country would fail us if we ever got sick here.

 

When opportunity arises, we will leave. Would you like to swap places?

Sorry I don’t know your friend however walk about is still going  

it’s very built up now in Newquay , far from quiet in winter all the fields around the gannel are being built on all the way up the a30 to quintrell downs is being built on I think u would have a shock if u came back !
 st Austell is where they are rehousing a lot of drug addicts so u can imagine how that’s going

i interested in your health experience 

I had fantastic care when I got diagnosed with leukaemia over there however that was then 

the healthcare in Cornwall is awful and there’s literally no age in house care available 

I know this from people without work in community care, the population is increasing rapidly down here seems chaotic compared to a few years ago but nothing like up country…

[Sea breeze]

10 hours ago, Marisawright said:

So would you say it's worse than the NHS?

I’m also interested to hear thoughts on this matter 

[Sea breeze]

On 01/11/2023 at 20:44, InnerVoice said:

 

Thanks - so that's well and truly off the list of prospect retirement destinations then

Also the healthcare is completely flooded and no community care availability 

[pob]

On 04/11/2023 at 05:19, Marisawright said:

So would you say it's worse than the NHS?

Every time we see the doctor it costs us $100!

 

When my wife needed pain medication she was denied it and told that pain is only a state of mind by the doctors.

What she needed was a couple of days on morphine due to her injuries, what she got was a couple of paracetamol instead.

In the hospital there was over flowing bins of bandages with puss and blood on them.

I asked nursing staff if they would like me to remove the needles in my wife's arm because the way they were doing it was causing her pain and injury.

 

Yes the NHS is far from perfect. But you do not need to pay to see a doctor do you. You would be given pain medication if you had shattered your leg and were constantly crying and the only time you stopped crying was when you passed out due to pain levels, which is dangerous.

 

[Toots]

1 hour ago, pob said:

Every time we see the doctor it costs us $100!

 

When my wife needed pain medication she was denied it and told that pain is only a state of mind by the doctors.

What she needed was a couple of days on morphine due to her injuries, what she got was a couple of paracetamol instead.

In the hospital there was over flowing bins of bandages with puss and blood on them.

I asked nursing staff if they would like me to remove the needles in my wife's arm because the way they were doing it was causing her pain and injury.

 

Yes the NHS is far from perfect. But you do not need to pay to see a doctor do you. You would be given pain medication if you had shattered your leg and were constantly crying and the only time you stopped crying was when you passed out due to pain levels, which is dangerous.

 

Your poor wife.  That must have been horrible for her.

Are you in Sydney?  I'm wondering which hospital she was in.  I didn't like Canterbury hospital at all but I had good (if you can call being in hospital good) care in Royal Prince Alfred and the North Shore.

I think most people in Australia are prepared to pay when they go to a doctor unless that surgery bulk bills.

 

[Marisawright]

2 hours ago, pob said:

Every time we see the doctor it costs us $100

 

Wow, even after your Medicare rebate?  That's ridiculous.  There are still bulk billing GPs in Melbourne and even the doctors who charge, aren't charging as much as that. 

[ramot]

Sorry your wife had such a bad experience, and I hope she has now recovered.  Was the $100 charge before the Medicare rebate or after?

Both my husband and I have had a pretty rotten time health wise this year, and we can’t fault the treatment we have received, from the professional but also caring  paramedics to the hospital care. I accept I was in A&E for 24 hours due to bed shortage, but I was well looked after. My husband broke his ankle, and has been very well cared for, including home physiotherapy visits all free,

I think hospitals and health services are sadly stretched to the limit in both countries, and there will be bad experiences in both.but from my experiences of both the NHS when visiting England annually and here, Australia is where I prefer to be for health care

 

 

Edited November 4, 2023 by ramot

[ramot]

8 minutes ago, Marisawright said:

Wow, even after your Medicare rebate?  That's ridiculous.  There are still bulk billing GPs in Melbourne and even the doctors who charge, aren't charging as much as that. 

$90 charge from my Dr. on the Sunshine Coast before Medicare rebate

[Marisawright]

25 minutes ago, ramot said:

$90 charge from my Dr. on the Sunshine Coast before Medicare rebate

We're fortunate in Melbourne that most GPs offer bulk billing or reduced rates for seniors

[Toots]

2 minutes ago, Marisawright said:

We're fortunate in Melbourne that most GPs offer bulk billing or reduced rates for seniors

Same here.

[Toots]

3 minutes ago, Marisawright said:

We're fortunate in Melbourne that most GPs offer bulk billing or reduced rates for seniors

I think migrants from the UK have to remember this is not the UK with the NHS.  It's a different country and things are done differently here.  It's not much use comparing the two,